We are moved in. Our living room is mostly finished. I still need to hang some pictures and artwork but the furniture is pretty much in here. I have been frustrated with the way Ken puts his things by the front door so I was looking for some kind of storage solution. I found this after searching Walmart, Target and Ikea: an entryway bench.

When I’m done (I have to buy coathooks and some smaller hooks still) it will still be less than $60, plus I have the satisfaction of designing and making it myself, which is so freaking fun.

Here it is in the living room. It fits perfectly in the space I chose for it, and does exactly what I wanted it to do! I don’t think we’ll actually put coats on it because we have a coat closet, but we will put things like Camelbacks, dog gear, and my purse on the coat hooks (once I get them). And yes, I’m going to restain it. I am just really excited to see it in action!

As promised, here are instructions.

Entryway Storage Unit

Six 1x2x8 furring strips, $1.25 each $7.50

Two 1x3x8 furring strips $2.12 each $4.24

Two 2x2x8 furring strips $2.07 each $4.14

Minwax Polyshades (stain and polyurethane), $12 for 32 oz. can $12

Wood screws, #6 1 5/8”, $6.50 for a box of 370 (need 68) $6.50

Wood screws, #8 3”, $2 or $3 for box of 50 (need 8) $3

Foam paint brushes, $1.50 for multipack $1.50

#6 metal screw-in hooks, pack of 6, $5 $5

6 coat hooks, around $2 each $12

Total: Around $55, with extra stuff for more projects

Instructions

Cut 1x2x8 into 30 pieces, each 15” long

Cut each 2x2x8 into two 36” pieces and end up with one 24” piece

Cut each 1x3x8 into one 5’ piece and one 3’ (36”) piece

Put at least one coat of stain on everything.

Lay out 2 36” 2×2 pieces parallel to one another, and space out 15 of the small pieces of furring strips across them. Pick one of the 2×2 pieces to be the back; make sure the furring strip ends are flush with the back of the 2×2 (for when you attach the 1×3 pieces).

Do that twice so you have 2 identical bench seats made of two 2x2s and 15 thin strips.

Take the 24” 2×2 pieces and attach to the front or side of the bench seats (look at the picture; I put mine on the sides). Make sure to measure how long you make the legs with the bottom bench so it’s the same distance on each end.

Take the 5’ pieces and put them on the back of the benches. Do the bottom first- make sure you measure them to match the front legs before drilling.

Put the two 36” pieces across the top of the 5’ pieces. Space out the small hooks on the top piece for hats/ keys, and the coat hooks on the lower piece for bags/purses/coats.